Waltrop is a town in the district of Recklinghausen, in

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a States of Germany, state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more tha ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. It is situated on the

Datteln-Hamm Canal The Datteln-Hamm Canal (german: Datteln-Hamm-Kanal) is a canal in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It links the Dortmund-Ems Canal at Datteln to the city of Hamm. The canal is long and has two locks, at Hamm and Werries, with a ...

, approximately 15 km east of

Recklinghausen Recklinghausen (; Westphalian: ''Riäkelhusen'') is the northernmost city in the Ruhr-Area and the capital of the Recklinghausen district. It borders the rural Münsterland and is characterized by large fields and farms in the north and indus ...

and 15 km north-west of

Dortmund Dortmund (; Westphalian nds, Düörpm ; la, Tremonia) is the third-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne and Düsseldorf, and the eighth-largest city of Germany, with a population of 588,250 inhabitants as of 2021. It is the la ...

Division of the town

The town of Waltrop is surrounded by the ''Bauerschaften'' (rural boroughs) Lippe (Unterlippe/Oberlippe), Elmenhorst, Brockenscheidt, Leveringhausen, Oberwiese and Holthausen.

History

People already settled in this area about 2,000 years ago. The village developed around the parish church of St. Peter which was built in the 9th/10th century. It is known that in 1432 Waltrop was a part of the county Dortmund. After the

Soest Feud The Soest Feud (german: Soester Fehde), or Feud of Soest, was a feud that took place from 1444 to 1449 in which the town of Soest claimed its freedom from Archbishop Dietrich of Cologne (1414–1463), who tried to restore his rule. The town of S ...

, the archbishops of Cologne could intervene against the counts of Mark, so that Waltrop became a part of Vest Recklinghausen. The production of coal in the mine started in 1905. As a consequence, Waltrop grew larger and became an industrial town. The coal mine was closed down in 1974. In 1939, Waltrop got its municipal rights.

Governance

The town council of Waltrop consists of 36 seats, which are divided into 6 parliamentary groups since September 2020: *

SPD The Social Democratic Party of Germany (german: Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, ; SPD, ) is a centre-left social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany. Saskia Esken has been t ...

, 13 seats * CDU, 12 seats * Greens, 5 seats *Waltroper Aufbruch (WA), 3 seats * FDP, 2 seats * Die Linke, 1 seat Since 2020 Marcel Mittelbach (SPD) is

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

of Waltrop.

Notable places

Waltrop is home to a museum of old

ship lift A shiplift is a modern alternative for a slipway, a floating dry dock or a graving dry dock. A shiplift is used to dry dock and launch ships. It consists of a structural platform that is lifted and lowered exactly vertically, synchronously by ...

s, including the

Henrichenburg boat lift The Henrichenburg boat lift facilitates a change in elevation of the Dortmund-Ems-Kanal in Waltrop-Oberwiese. The boat lift is part of the Waltrop Lock Park (Schleusenpark), which includes the old Henrichenburg boat lift built in 1899, a disused ...

and a historical coal mine.

Local industry

Manufactum Manufactum GmbH & Co. KG (formerly ''Manufactum Hoof & Partner KG'') is a German retailer with nine full-sized stores in Germany and an online store that serves primarily Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and the UK. The main focus of the company a ...

, upscale retailer for traditionally-made household goods *Langendorf, a tipping trailer manufacturer

Notable people

* Sylvia Dördelmann (born 1970), rower *

Matthias Hues Matthias Hues (born 14 February 1959) is a German-born, naturalized American actor and martial artist. He was born in Waltrop, Germany, to Dr. Josef Hues and Maria Humperdinck Hues who still reside in Germany. Maria is the niece of Engelbert ...

(born 1959), actor and martial artist *

Christoph Korte Christoph Korte (born 28 December 1965) is a German former rower and geochemist. He competed in the men's coxed four event at the 1988 Summer Olympics. At the World Cup in Tasmania, Australia in 1990, he won the championship in the class of m ...

(born 1965), rower *

Michel Lewandowski Michel Lewandowski (born Mieczyslaus Lewandowski; 28 May 1914 – 7 September 1990) was a professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He played his entire career in France and was a French military international. Playing career Miecz ...

(1914–1990), footballer * Alexander Baumjohann (born 1987), footballer

Twin towns – sister cities

Waltrop is twinned with: *

Herne Bay Herne Bay is a seaside town on the north coast of Kent in South East England. It is north of Canterbury and east of Whitstable. It neighbours the ancient villages of Herne and Reculver and is part of the City of Canterbury local government ...

, England, United Kingdom (1976) * Cesson-Sévigné, France (1984) * San Miguelito, Nicaragua (1988) *

Gardelegen Gardelegen (; nds, Garlä) is a town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated on the right bank of the Milde, 20 m. W. from Stendal, on the main line of railway Berlin-Hanover. History Gardelegen has a Roman Catholic and three Evangelical chur ...

, Germany (1990) *

Görele Görele is a town and a district of Giresun Province on the Black Sea coast of eastern Turkey. The population was 16,033 in 2010. Geography The district is mainly mountainous and watered by streams and rivers running into the Black Sea, the h ...

, Turkey (2012)

References

External links

* Towns in North Rhine-Westphalia Recklinghausen (district) {{Recklinghausen-geo-stub